By Tim Saunders on
It was a delectable night of weird and wonderful gastronomic delights when a group of celebrities were served a meal made from ingredients totally grown, plucked, picked, fished, harvested, collected, reaped, and gathered from in and around London late last week.
Over 400 guests, including Annie Lennox, Mick Jagger, Colin Firth, Jemima Khan, Richard E. Grant, Jamie Cullum, Sophie Dahl, and Sting's wife Trudie Styler, gathered in Guildhall for the “Feast Of Albion”, an event masterminded by TV chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.
Money raised from the $2000-a-head evening, which included a performance from Lennox, went to the Soil Association, the UK’s leading environmental charity promoting sustainable, organic farming, and championing human health.
Guests were served a selection of unique dishes, including nettles picked from Hyde Park, wild fennel from the banks of Regent’s Canal in Hackney, organic beetroot from Romney Marsh, oysters from the Blackwater river in Essex, and venison from the Windsor Estate, with many of the ingredients being transported by bicycle up to 50 miles to the venue to reduce the event’s carbon footprint. The aim was to encourage supermarkets to stop flying out-of-season produce across the world and to promote locally grown foods.
“Organic farming enables poor farmers in developing countries to get into growing food for their families and communities in a way that’s genuinely sustainable,” said Lennox. “Eat organic, save the planet – it’s that simple.”
A live auction – which included items such as an environmentally friendly holiday at a Himalayan retreat – raised more than $600,000 for the Soil Association.
Copyright © 2008 Look to the Stars
